New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1887-07-29
NEW PUBLICATIONS
. sr1rnENT IN GERMANY.

.rvv .xoNa THE GERMANS. BY EMxA LopIss
PARaY. 12mo. Up. S4o' "os'on' 40 A"1
pany =. :. ~..,,v an
.ccoont OF life among the Germans, but not an
.ccount of Gerrpan life An American girl GONG u
Germany for educational ends sought eerman
,,.,s;ox whore no English was spoken, 80 tne 'e's
and shortest method of acquiring that mastery OF
the language absolutely necessary 10 INC 'uS'"'
GENT following of instruction IN any or""0n VI
knowledge. The German pension. however Is at
hast but a hybrid concsrn. and even where all tno
inmates ere natives OF the country stoay VI ="
can no more give true insight into German w. iva"
a study of an American boarding-honse co"'u CIV
true ips,eht to American life. Naturally inc .o'ns'
which most struck the author wore those sn"' oo
ventionaliti in which national usage aiuo'o -"
There are proprieties at Berlin wnio. "o
acted or even realized at New YORK. ana c'ce o"'@
49,, No Familiarity with or analysis OF these OK
,.r,al;t,as can furnish any cew to the ln'ricacies
of foreign existence. al
Miss parry seems to have had sharp eye LOT nn
,o;rt. If difference. At o later perlod sue was
enabled I, survey family life IN Uermany uhue'
specially good and full opportunities. AZ 10 no' 1c
farI, that she could not make nee OF these. 10
n.nv nsonle Z ia never given to know their neish
hor. and those who exotic remain seaied pooA'
to them in perpetuity. This author has a super
fetal aertness IN Selling IMPRESSIONS put her po'
cepton is never more than skin Deep ana Is cicar
that the German character is as incomprenen''o'o
10 hcr at the end as at the beginning one does ho'
succeed in making some things quite ciear' nov
ever. and one of them is matter of Importance TO
maov younc Americans of both sexes. 1t i, the
imprudcuce of rushing Oft to Germany for develop
mept aud training in music, art. ETC., upon tue
.trenpth of neighborhood opinion or conjecture
She ahows that this course often involves serrioie
d;sapnoiptmeut for the student In the hrst place,
rbe Amer cau coming to the German educatoha'
system late in life, lacking the indispensable iu"-
damental instruction to which every German has
devoted years. is handicapped almost hopelessiy az
the ou+set In the second place, there Is the oo-
stracrion of a language difficult to MASTER anu
when that ia DONE if it is DONE there 10 the porten
tons seriousness aud application demanded ny the
German teachers
The voung American has to realze-which he or
sbe does painfully and despondentiy-tnat inc
homo training has been wOfaly detective; that inc
homo methods have been clumsy and lnenective;
that the homo spirit has been fatally weak ana
IifeIess: and that a radical change must be under
o,ue in all these respects before any good can be
DINE. In Germany absolute devotion to special
st ,dies ia a matter of course. The whole waking
dav must be given to the easel, the piano, the
v;oin the lecture-room or the library. NO per-
tunctorv work is tolerated for moment by the
professors. No easy tasks are set by them An
appetite and capacity for work which frighten the
newcomer are presupposed by these Unsuitable
know iedge-seekers. The American soon comes 10
understand that competence in the line chosen
will cost DEAR but that If he Is willing to pay tho
price the knowledge gained will DO thorough. VI
course mauy are not willing. They lack the
stamina. The ordeal terrifts them. They sink out
of the competition and are heard of no more.
Miss Parry went about good deal, saw the
Germans IN gala moods. as during the Luther
Jubilee. and learned to like them much There Is
in her description and criticism nothing incon-
sis.ent with loyalty to the sacred laws OF nospita
ity, and it is pleasant to be able to say that al
time when so many travellers abuse their priv
ileges for the ignoble end of sensationalism ms
volume if lot dee D. is fresh and wholesome, and IL
conv eys a good deal of interesting matter In an
easy and agreeable way.